The first Chemical Security Week is taking place in Moldova on October 21-27. In a news conference at IPN, representatives of the National Union of Agricultural Producers Associations “UniAgroProtect” said the goal of the campaign is to inform society about the necessity of knowing the chemical composition of the used products.
The Chemical Security Week is themed “Are your aware? Be also informed – read the label. Say NO to products containing dangerous chemical substances”. “UniAgroProtect” chairman Alexandru Slusari said that even if he worked for many years in the agricultural sector, he didn’t know all the chemical products that affect the people’s health.
“In a modern society, the use of chemical substances is indispensable. But the people must know how they can affect their state of health and the health of animals. The shortage of information is the most worrisome aspect. The recent examinations showed that the food and agricultural products are mainly inoffensive. The composition of heavy metals exceeded the norm only in fish. However, the toys are very dangerous. 90% of the examined toys didn’t have labels or documents of origin,” said Alexandru Slusari.
Minister of the Environment Gheorghe Salaru, who took part in the same conference, said the project is aimed at informing the people about the benefits of chemical substances and the risks they pose. “Moldova is active in the fight against the use of noxious substances and signed a number of international agreements and treaties in this field,” he stated.
According to Gheorghe Salaru, the problem of chemical products was raised for the first time, while society is not informed, especially as regards the building materials containing asbestos. In villages, about 90% of the houses are covered with slates that contain asbestos. In a period they start to have a negative effect on the people.
The Chemical Security Week includes a roundtable meeting centering on the improvement of the situation as regards the use of chemical products. Thematic ecology classes will be given in the national schools. The librarians will be taught how to inform society about the effects of the chemical products, while the parents how to protect their children from food products and toys containing heavy metals. There will be staged flashmob meetings on ecological themes and disseminated information about the chemical products and their use.
The organizers hope that after the project is implemented the people will be more attentive to what they consume or use and will read the label so as to inform themselves about the quality of products.
